Activision Sues Media Giant Viacom

Published 8:00 pm, Monday, June 30, 2003

Activision Inc. Tuesday said it sued media giant Viacom Inc. for not committing to the Star Trek franchise, diminishing the value of the video game developer's license to produce Star Trek games.

In 1998, Activision entered a 10-year deal with Viacom that gave it exclusive rights to produce Star Trek titles.

Since then, Activision said Viacom has only produced one new Star Trek movie, with no immediate plans to make others, and allowed two Star Trek television shows to go off the air, while the ratings of a third lag.

Viacom representatives were not immediately available for comment.

Santa Monica-based Activision said the initial license agreement included $20 million in advance royalties and warrants, with additional payments to be based on game sales. The company wouldn't comment on the amount of damages it is seeking.